Nightmare
by mightydeafeningmouse
Summary: Peter has a nightmare, Tony comforts him.


"It's too late for this shit," Tony muttered bitterly to himself. For Tony though, it wasn't that late. It was only 1:51 A.M. and it wasn't like Tony could go to sleep even if he wanted to. Insomnia's a bitch. Even so, there were things that had to get done.

Tony had already completed Capsicle's suit upgrades, which he will be happy to present to Steve later, but there was still piles of projects he had been needing time finish.

Tony was blasting AC/DC all through out his lab as a personal motivator, but it wasn't enough.

"I really need to stop drinking this much coffee," Tony whispered to himself as he poured another cup.

He was about to start working on new arrows for Clint, but then he noticed his music volume slowly decreasing.

"Jarvis!" Tony shouted accusingly. "What did I tell you about messing with my music?"

"My apologies, Sir. I interrupt to inform you about Mr. Parker?" Jarvis imposed.

"Proceed," Tony replied lazily while twirling one of Clint's old arrows, sipping his coffee.

"Mr. Parker appears to be in some sort of distress. His heart rate is above normal and his breathing pattern is not healthy. I believe his is in the midis of a panic attack." Jarvis stated.

Tony choked on his coffee. "Jesus Christ," He coughed. "Dammit, Jarvis, why didn't you say so!"

Once Tony coughed the coffee out of his lungs, he sprung out the door, dashing to the elevator.

"Come on, come on, come on," Tony mumbled impatiently, pressing the elevator buttons impulsively.

"Sir, a word of caution," Jarvis spoke out. "Mr. Parker is still asleep. He is experiencing a nightmare and I do not believe he knows where he is."

"Got it, Jarvis. God, why won't this thing move faster!" Tony yelled.

"He may try to harm you-"

"AM I EVEN MOVING?!" Tony was pounding the 5th floor button.

The elevator doors parted and Tony slipped through them, sprinting to Peter's bedroom.

Tony reached the door. He yanked on the door knob. "Jarvis, unlock the door!" He commanded.

The door unlocked with a click. Tony rushed in, his mind not completely prepared for the scene his eyes then gazed upon.

Peter was curled up, laying on his side, tears streaming down his face. Tony could hear little, heartbreaking whimpers fall from his lips. Peter's body was shaking like he had just been swimming in Alaska.

Tony wasted no time in sprinting over to the bed. Carefully, he gripped Peter's shoulders and tried to wake him.

"Peter! It's okay, you're safe. It's okay," Tony shook Peter's shoulders.

Peter's eyelids flew open. Blindly, he through a punch that narrowly missed Tony's jaw. Tony flinched back instinctively, momentarily blinded by panic, but a second later he was trying to pin down Peter's arms.

"Kid! Stop, it's me, it's Tony!" Peter stopped struggling in Tony's arms.

"T-Ton-ny?" Peter stuttered. The amount of shaking Peter's body was doing was making it difficult for the poor kid to speak.

"It's okay, I'm here. You're safe, it's okay, Bud. It's okay." Tony pulled the kid into his chest.

"T-Tony-" Peter whimpered into Tony's chest.

Tony gently pushed Peter's shaking form away from his body. He carefully grabbed Peter's hand and put it over his arc reactor. "Feel my heartbeat? Just focus on that."

"Ton-ny... you l-left m-me... pl-lease, d-don't go." Peter tilted his head, looking up at Tony with huge, puppy eyes with tears flowing down his cheeks.

"Hey, Pete," Tony placed both of his hands on either side of Peter's face. "It's okay, everything's okay. No one's going to hurt you. I'll protect you."

Peter looked at him with his big, soft puppy eyes. "Promise?"

And in that moment, Tony realized how young Peter truly is. Peter's very advanced and mature for his age. He's incredibly brilliant, a true genius, and he was only 15. Peter had seen life being created and death claiming someone's soul and still managed to be the most innocent person Tony knew. Wow.

"I promise." Tony pulled Peter into his chest again.

"Hear my heartbeat? Just focus on that." Tony whispered softly. He gently wrapped his arms around Peter's tiny, trembling frame.

"It's okay." Tony softly kissed the top of Peter's head. "I won't let anything hurt you."


End file.
